the violent true believer: types, vulnerabilities...
TRANSCRIPT
The Violent True Believer: Types, Vulnerabilities, Interview Techniques
J. Reid Meloy, Ph.D. 8th Biennial Threat Management Symposium Ontario Provincial Police May 12-14, 2015
The Violent True Believer
® “An individual committed to an ideology or belief system which advances homicide and/or suicide as a legitimate means to further a particular goal.”
l JR Meloy, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, July, 2011
A Typology of Violent True Believers (FBI BAP, 2002)
® Unwavering ® Affiliative ® Opportunistic ® Criminal ® Betrayer ® Psychotic ® Fledgling
1. Unwavering Violent True Believer
® Description ® Hard core, rigid, deeply held beliefs ® Absolute belief in righteousness of cause ® Deep sense of his own perfection ® Irrational fear of imminent assault ® Warrior mentality ® Superior IQ, educated ® Condemns unbelievers ® Command and control position
2. Affiliative Violent True Believer ® Description
® Anxious and dependent ® Primarily a follower ® Idealizes others ® “Black sheep” of family, angry at them ® History of depression or suicide ® Grandiose fantasies to join martyrs ® Feels disappointed and damaged by others from
his past
3. Opportunistic Violent True Believer
® Description ® Filled with self importance ® Joined to meet selfish needs ® Wealth, power, control, property ® Likes to dominate subordinates ® Appears autonomous ® Needs attention and admiration ® The cause is himself ® May be quite charismatic
4. Criminal Violent True Believer
® Description ® The “berserker” of the group ® Criminal history ® In severe cases, a psychopath ® Sensation-seeker ® Likes violence and cruelty ® Only interested in action, fearless ® Immediate gratification wanted ® A loner, no attachments
5. Betrayer Violent True Believer
® Description ® Knows whom he hates ® Wants to retaliate and betray ® Feels victimized by past events ® Generally passive but angry ® Loves duping or conning others ® Fearful of direct aggression ® Presents as arrogant ® Inadequate and low self esteem
6. Psychotic Violent True Believer
® Description ® Major mental disorder ® Schizophrenia or bipolar disorder ® Religion melds with delusion ® Falls apart when stressed ® Beliefs become more bizarre ® May disregard personal hygiene ® Will be sidelined, marginalized by cell ® May be exploited by criminal type
7. Fledgling Violent True Believer
® Description ® Child or adolescent ® May become one of six other types ® Immature and inexperienced ® Indoctrination
® Learns from parents or teachers ® Intensive programming or brainwashing
® Personal suffering ® Physical abuse or neglect ® Family suffering through actual oppression
Interviewing the Violent True Believer ® Preparation
® Selecting the interviewer ® Use the same person to interview across time ® Don’t use multiple interviewers ® Think about the reasons for selection ® Transference is always present ® Demographics of interviewer ® Skill level of interviewer ® Experience of interviewer
Interviewing
® Preparation ® Do your homework before the interview
® Knowledge of culture, society, religion, politics ® Knowledge of personal data and intelligence ® Why?
l Establishes rapport l Useful to detect deception or manipulation l Information grid may track information
Interviewing
® Preparation ® Define approach and direction
® How many times can he/she be interviewed? ® What is the goal of the first interview? ® What should approach of interviewer be? ® Strategic or tactical information likely false ® Behavioral information
l Useful to establish baseline l Use in subsequent interviews
Interviewing ® Preparation
® Location of the interview ® Transportation route to place of interview ® Safety and security during interview ® Use of props ® Service of food ® Artifacts, symbols, evidence in room ® Do not allow psychological escape ® Cognitive dissonance
Interviewing
® Placement Before and After Interview ® All of us are hard-wired to bond ® Traumatic bonding (“Stockholm
Syndrome”) ® Isolation useful to increase attachment ® Self-disclosure: true or false? ® Awareness of interviewer’s attachment ® Cross-talk monitoring
Interviewing
® Establishing Rapport ® Smile ® Listen carefully ® Find something in common ® Mirror the interviewee, test it ® Avoid blunders ® Read Advanced Interviewing Techniques by Jack
Shafer and Joe Navarro ® Read The Black Banners by Ali Soufan
Interviewing
® The Line of Questioning ® Patience and flexibility ® 2-3 hour increments ® Avoid predictability ® Do not terminate early due to resistance ® Confessions vs. admissions ® Open-ended and nonjudgmental Qs ® Do not challenge religion or beliefs
Interviewing
® The Line of Questioning (cont’d) ® “Tell me more”—show admiration ® Terrorist vs. soldier ® Repeat questioning useful ® Three step approach
® Create a doubt about his beliefs ® Offer a potential reward for cooperation ® Ask God (Allah) for guidance of the interview
and the interviewer and interviewee as a team
Interviewing ® Emotion
® Always present and influences thinking ® Stress reactions: freeze, flight, fight,
appease ® Universal emotions: happiness, fear,
anger, disgust, sadness, and distress ® Rules of display differ among cultures ® Don’t react to emotional tirades ® Maintain calmness and control
Interviewing
® Calibration ® Measurement of typical behavior ® When lying or telling the truth ® Asking control questions ® Individual differences abound ® Look for deviating behavior when individual
lies
Interviewing ® Deception and Manipulation
® No absolute, infallible way to detect ® Emotion is not a determinant of lying ® Slips of the tongue and tirades ® Know behavioral clues to deceit ® Understand your own biases
® Eg, confirmatory, availability ® Most effective means are comparing facts
across multiple sources of data
Interviewing
® Deception and Manipulation (cont’d) ® Most common mistake: being misled by the
special skill you think you possess to detect lying and deceit.
Interviewing
® Countermeasures ® Specific cultural issues ® Continuity of data collection ® Teamwork
® “Almighty God says, ‘And hold fast, all together, by the Rope which Allah stretches out for you, and be not divided among yourselves.”
Interview Approaches to the Seven Subtypes
® Unwavering True Believer ® Adapt a student’s stance toward subject ® Tolerate tirades and look for admissions ® Compliments need to be done carefully ® Acknowledge cultural differences ® Confrontation and threat will usually not
work ® The most difficult type to interview
Interview Approaches
® Affiliative True Believer ® Warm, affectionate, yet dominant approach ® Older male interviewer familiar with family
dynamics and culture of subject ® Consistently visit with subject to establish a
bond ® Beliefs are secondary to desire to be
attached to others and/or powerful group
Interview Approaches
® Opportunistic True Believer ® Use flattery in a direct way ® He needs admiration and attention ® Will be sullen and angry when “narcissistic”
supplies are not provided ® Identify his unmet desires: money, self-
importance, power, control, an audience ® May respond to direct offers
Interview Approaches
® Criminal True Believer ® Short term gratification the key: money,
drugs, excitement, power, sex ® Most dangerous of all types for affective
(reactive) violence during interview ® Don’t spend time trying to bond ® Will be physical and muscular ® Positive rewards that focus on creature
comforts
Interview Approaches
® Betrayer True Believer ® Look for ways to admire him, and mirror his
passive-aggressive style ® Empathize with his belief that others have
betrayed and wounded him in the past ® Be careful to not injure his self-esteem ® Help him plan a satisfying way to screw
those who betrayed him ® Be wary of his manipulations of interview
Interview Approaches
® Psychotic True Believer ® He yearns for safety from exploitation ® Isolate from others and psychiatrically treat ® Gratitude will contribute to bonding ® Has many fears, including his fear of
others, his inability to cope with moderate stress, and his uncontrollable thoughts, feelings, and perceptions
Interview Approaches
® Fledgling True Believer ® Still a child or adolescent despite beliefs ® Needs safety, security, stimulation, love,
and attention ® May be impulsive and grandiose ® May harbor private fantasies of heroism ® Needs consistent supervision, attention,
and control from a caring adult
® JR Meloy & K Mohandie (2014). Assessing threats by direct interview of the violent true believer. International Handbook of Threat Assessment. New York: Oxford Univ. Press.